Bosnia’s top judicial institution can not hand down rulings in the cases of Dzenan Memic and David Dragicevic, two young men who died under mysterious circumstances, but if any wrongdoing by judges and prosecutors in those cases is determined they will be disciplined, the head of the institution, Milan Tegeltija, told N1 on Thursday.
In March 2018, police in Bosnia’s Serb-majority region of Republika Srpska found the body of 21-year-old David Dragicevic in a local river near the city of Banja Luka.
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Authorities first said the cause of death was drowning and that the young man took drugs. This sparked a series of protests led by David’s father, Davor Dragicevic, who believes police is protecting whoever killed his son.
The death is now being investigated as a murder case, but little progress has been made in this investigation.
Dzenan Memic was also 21 years old when his lifeless body was discovered in February 2016 in Sarajevo.
The Court initially ruled that Memic died after being struck by a car, but in a recent trial, those accused of causing the accident were cleared of responsibility.
The father of the young man, Muriz Memic, was satisfied with the ruling because he never believed that his son's death accidental. He is convinced that local authorities, specifically the prosecutor’s office, are trying to protect the murderers of Dzenan.
Citizens gathered in masses several times to express support for Memic.
The investigations into both cases were marred with controversies. The High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council (HJCP), the institution which names and disciplines judges and prosecutors, also faced criticism over it.
“Those are very difficult cases, they can stir up emotions. The people and the families who were wronged have a right to be disappointed,” Tegeltija said.
“We don’t hand down rulings, we don’t prosecute. We don’t have the competencies for that. We are at the helm of the system and I will accept that criticism,” he said, adding that he can do nothing more than ask for the procedures in those cases to be accelerated.
But then he made a promise.
“If any wrongdoing by any judge or prosecutor is determined, that person will not avoid responsibility, at least regarding disciplinary procedures which we have competencies for,” he said.
